Page 37 of Into the Light

“What’s up?” I asked Pico, turning my full attention toward him and away from the memories that had plagued me for the last eight months.

“You did good in there. I was fucking impressed.”

I chuckled before giving his shoulder a slap. “Thanks, man. Your help at the start doesn’t go unnoticed. You are far more fit for the leadership role than I ever will be.” I laughed.

“Nah. After the stunt you pulled today, I am fully impressed with you. Congrats.”

“Thanks.”

“I heard your slip-up. Not to change subjects or anything.” Even in the night, only illuminated by the small porch light in the back of the house, I could see Pico twist his lips into a slight smile. I looked back at him, my mind still on Ember.

“It was nothing more than a slip-up. Exactly as you said.” I tried to cover my tracks because calling Ember mine felt so right, so natural, but she would never be mine . . . at least not fully. Not until we resolved what happened with Ash.

“Of all the people walking on this earth today, he’d want it to be you.” I swallowed hard at Pico’s confession. He would have wanted it to be me. I knew Ash. He put so much already in my hands, he’d want it to be me, but I couldn’t let it be. Because I still saw her as his.

“Growing up with the two of you was wild.” Pico chuckled and ran a hand through his hair before leaning against the back of the house and lighting a cigarette.

He handed me a pack, and I grabbed one from him and let him light it. I didn’t smoke until high school, and even now, I didn’t like smoking, but it kept my hands busy. I needed something to keep them busy because there was so much to process, not to mention the fact Ember was just upstairs sleeping in my room.

“Why?” I asked as I inhaled the tobacco.

“Because you two were like fucking twins, if I hadn’t known any better. Ash bossed you around, and you always followed him. But man, if he didn’t want to do something or you weren’t involved, he used to fuck people up.”

“Wait, what?” I asked, not knowing this.

“You didn’t know?” I shook my head, and Pico laughed before he took a deep pull of his smoke.

“Okay, you remember when we were in eighth grade, and we were invited to Trey Thompson’s house? It was like our first real party since his parents were going to be out of town?” I gave him a smirk, remembering my first real party invite.

“Well, he didn’t want to invite you. He called you a weirdo because you liked to sit in the back of class and at lunch with your book.” I narrowed my eyes at him, which only made him laugh. “Come on, you were kinda a loner.” I shrugged at his confession. “Anyway, Ash went over to his house and fucking beat the shit out of him until he personally came up to you at school and invited you.”

“Shut up,” I said, laughing.

“Nah, it’s totally true. He fucked him up good, too. Told him that he was going to get his dad to personally murder each one of his family members, too. He was a damn eighth grader and was acting like his fucking dad already.”

This made me feel sad because to everyone else, he was a born leader, but what no one saw except for me was that Mr. Ortiz groomed him to be this way. He literally broke him down and tried to remold him into this born leader.

“Damn, that’s impressive,” I responded, letting the cigarette dangle from the corner of my mouth. My hands twitched at my sides as the anxiety creeped into me.

“It’s all to say that you guys had a bond like I’d never seen. I definitely don’t feel the same about my sister.”

Both of us were now propped up at the back of the house, looking into the depths of the forest.

“I went up to his room,” I said, not directed at Pico but more so at the darkness that threatened to consume us.

“And?”

“I’m trying to figure out what happened to him that night, Pico. I just cannot believe that anyone else was out there, but that doesn’t explain the two tracks.” I purposefully left out the fact that I knew there was no mud on the rock with the second pair of boots. I trusted Pico, but I wanted to keep this between Ember and me, at least until we could get the whole picture.

“You’ll figure it out. If you need anything, too, I’m right here ready to help.” He paused, then turned his head toward me. “I know it doesn’t help much, but I am on your side, Rain. I’m right here.”

“Thanks man,” I responded, and then slowly dragged the smoke from the cigarette before looking back toward the trees.

“Is smoking at the edge of a forest really such a good idea? Won’t the trees, like, set on fire and suddenly we’ll have a forest fire?” A delicate voice melodically drifted our way from where the door stood, and Pico and I turned our heads in its direction.

“The ground’s wet, Ember. No one is starting a fire here, just two guys indulging in a bad habit,” Pico said before he pushed off the wall and gave me a friendly pat on the shoulder.

“See you later. I’ll go check to make sure everyone’s cleaned up.” Pico winked at me before greeting Ember, then heading back into the house.

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